


Overworked

by fambamweekly



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: 96 line - Freeform, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Canon Compliant, Fluff, Hospitals, Hurt/Comfort, Non AU, Overworking, Protectiveness, Sickfic, Soft Lee Jihoon, Stress, relationship can be seen as either platonic or romantic, sick! Chan, why is that not a proper tag, with a hint of leader line if you can catch it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-20
Updated: 2020-08-25
Packaged: 2021-03-06 21:41:19
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,501
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26015917
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fambamweekly/pseuds/fambamweekly
Summary: Jihoon has told Chan over and over again not to overwork himself, however Chan refuses to listen to him.OR Chan ends up hospitalized and thinks his Jihoon hyung’s mad at him.
Relationships: Jeon Wonwoo & Kwon Soonyoung | Hoshi & Lee Jihoon | Woozi & Wen Jun Hui | Jun, Lee Chan | Dino & Lee Jihoon | Woozi, Lee Chan | Dino/Lee Jihoon | Woozi
Comments: 10
Kudos: 136





	1. The Disagreement

**Author's Note:**

> Jihoon/Chan though can be read as either platonic or romantic! Also splashes of leader line and of freaking course 96 line bc ya’ll kNOW i can’t resist ;) okay carry on thank you for reading pls leave any and all comments and kudos after if you could be so kind *puppy dog eyes*

“Alright you guys! That’s a wrap for today!”

It was currently 11 PM. The boys have been practicing for a little over 4 hours now on their new choreography and yet they were only half-way through the song. But it was fine since their comeback wasn’t set for another 3 months or so and they were practicing everyday. By tomorrow, they’ll probably finish learning the choreography and would just need to keep practicing to perfect it.

Sighs of relief were let out as some of the members collapsed to the floor right where they were standing while the others opted to walk towards their bags to grab water for themselves and the other members.

Jihoon let out a groan as he rolled out the muscles in his back. Accepting some water from Soonyoung with a thanks, Jihoon walked towards the wall to slide his back against it and sat down. Rolling out his neck, he felt footsteps heading towards him and looked up to watch Seungcheol as he sat beside him.

“Good practice?”

“Yeah. So tired though. I don’t think I’ll ever get used to it.”

Laughing, Seungcheol gestured for the water bottle from Jihoon’s hand.

“Me neither.”

Taking a huge gulp, Seungcheol handed the bottle back to Jihoon and stood up, clapping his hands.

“Alright guys! Gather up your things! Who’s heading back to the dorms right now?”

A lot of the guys raised their hands. Wonwoo, who wasn’t raising his hand, said to the leader, “Hansol and I are going to go over rap lyrics a bit in the studio.”

“We’re planning on going for a walk to get some air and destress a bit.” Jeonghan said, motioning towards Jisoo.

“I’m heading towards my studio for a bit,” Jihoon called out from his spot.

“Alright. Everyone else is going back to the dorms? Let’s go!”

The sound of tumbling feet as members began gathering their belongings and leaving were heard. Jihoon, heading towards his own bag, noticed Chan approaching Seungcheol in the corner while Seungcheol was turning off the sound equipment. Curious, Jihoon inched a bit closer, feigning filling up his water bottle near where they stood to eavesdrop.

“...leave it?

“Are you sure Chan? You know the limits of practicing for our bodies. We did a lot today.”

“I’m sure, hyung. I won’t practice for long, I just want to perfect a move!”

“...Chan you’re still a bit sick. I don’t think that’s a good idea…”

“Please hyung? I promise I won’t overexert myself! I know my limits. I just really need to practice this part or I won’t be able to sleep tonight!”

“....okay. If you promise to come home straight away after you’ve finished... actually I’m going to set you a curfew. Be home by 1!”

“Hyung!”

“Nope. You need your sleep. Practice can wait. You're lucky I didn’t make it 12.”

“...fine.”

Seungcheol reached up to ruffle the maknae’s hair.

“Don’t go over your limit. If you start feeling tired, just stop for the night and we’ll pick it up at practice tomorrow.”

“Ne hyung! Good night!”

“Good night Chan-ah.”

Seungcheol swung his bag over his shoulder as he walked out the door. The only members now in the room were Jihoon and Chan.

“Oh? Hyung? Aren’t you going to your studio?”

Jihoon gave a fixed stare at Chan.

“I am. But I think you should go back to the dorms.”

“What? Seungcheol hyung said I can stay though.”

“Yeah but you’re still sick.”

“So? The doctor cleared me for practice today, I already missed yesterday! And being sick doesn’t mean I can’t move or do things on my own!”

“No it doesn’t but it does mean you need to go home and rest and sleep!”

“I’ll do that _after_ I practice, hyung!”

“No. You’ll do it now. If you keep practicing, you’ll only keep hurting yourself.”

“I won’t!”

“Yes, you will! You’re still sick!”

Frustrated, Chan raised his hands up. 

“Well I guess sick means doing nothing! Why weren’t you like this when Seungkwan got sick? Why do you keep insisting on treating me like a baby? You’re not my mom! You can’t tell me what to do!”

“No I’m not your mom, but I am your hyung, and you need to listen to me.”

“I don’t _need_ to listen to you. Technically Seungcheol hyung already gave me permission and he’s older than you, so I will listen to him!”

“Goddammit Chan do you ever think about yourself first?!”

“If I did, I’d be like you! Selfish!”

“...”

The only sounds left were the heavy breathing coming from Chan as he worked to control himself after the last outburst. Already regretting his words, he opened his mouth to apologize when Jihoon softly spoke up,

“You’re right. I am selfish. I’m selfish to want to take care of someone I care about. But it seems like it’s being unappreciated. So I’ll leave you alone. Have a good night Chan.”

Jihoon swung around and walked out the door. Chan stood there feeling guilty. He wanted to run after his hyung but he didn’t know if his hyung would want to listen to him right now. He decided to wait a bit after they have both calmed down and apologize later. Taking a deep breath, he put the music back on and began practicing.

Meanwhile, Jihoon sat on his studio chair, rubbing his forehead as he could feel a headache about to form.

“Aish, this kid is going to kill me one day.”

Jihoon was worried about Chan. His habits seemed familiar to the habits that he once had and he didn’t want his dongsaeng to suffer the way he did. Jihoon was grateful for Seungcheol and Soonyoung for helping him to get out of that mindset but it seemed like Chan needed the advice now.

Groaning, all he could do now is to give the kid some space and find another time to talk to him again about it. Booting up his computer, he began tweaking some songs that he had started composing.

* * *

It was around 1 in the morning when someone knocked on his studio door. Looking at it in confusion, Jihoon paused the music that was blasting out of his systems and called out for the person to come in. The door slowly opened, revealing Chan, looking much paler than he had been before.

Worried, Jihoon got up to his feet.

“Hi hyung.”

“Chan… come in. Take a seat.”

“Thank you but I won’t be here long. I just wanted to apologize for what I said in the practice room earlier. It was totally uncalled for.”

Jihoon was only half listening to his words as he paid more attention to the way Chan’s body was swaying without him seemingly noticing.

“...hyung?”

“Oh, yes. Sorry. Thank you for apologizing. But I hope you know I only do it because I care about you. And I want you to care for yourself.”

Before Chan could think about arguing against that statement, that he is in fact able to take care of himself just fine, he began heavily swaying. The last thing he saw was his Jihoon hyung, rushing towards him with a panicked look on his face and then he suddenly blacked out.


	2. The Aftermath

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Last thing Chan remembered was seeing his Jihoon hyung's face before he blacked out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i honestly feel so blessed that ya'll commented and kudos like can i cry aH THANK YOU. pls enjoy.

_Beep. Beep. Beep._

Groaning at the annoying beeping sound he was hearing, Chan felt a slight headache coming up. Tossing his head around, he felt a slight pain on his side and slowly opened his eyes. Looking up at the ceiling, he noticed that it was very white. _Wait._ .. _where was he?!_

Chan’s eyes widened in panic and in the distance, he could faintly hear a heart monitor going off as blood rushed through his ears. Suddenly a doctor came rushing into the room.

“Oh! You’re awake Chan-ssi. It’s okay, everything’s okay. You’re at the hospital right now. Do you remember what happened?”

_...hospital…?_

Trying to remember what had happened, he suddenly remembered falling and seeing Jihoon. Jihoon hyung!

“You’ve been sleeping for about two days now. Your body was trying to recover from a fever but the stress on it became too much and it spiked, causing you to faint. You were brought to the hospital pretty quickly which was a good thing. Any later and you could’ve been in a coma!”

Chan paled at the mere thought.

“But you were lucky! We currently have you on medication and nutrients right now. What we need for you to do is rest, rest, rest. Let your body heal and recover. Don’t put too much strain or pressure on yourself and your body, okay? I anticipate you being able to leave in about 3 days, but we’ll see how you do. If you keep putting stress on your body, you’ll be in the hospital longer, so behave okay? I’ll let your members know you're awake and they can come see you.”

Chan nodded, stunned by the revelation. The doctor wrote a few notes in his pad, adjusted a few knobs, and gave him a slight smile before walking out.

 _Jihoon hyung is going to kill me._ Chan thought, head dropping back onto his pillow. Before he could dwell more on the thought, the door opened once again.

“Chan!”

“Hyung, shhhh.”

“How’s our maknae doing?”

“Jun, I told you not to bring food in here!”

“I couldn’t just let it go to waste!”

“Hyungs!” Chan exclaimed loudly as all the voices were making his head spin.

All the attention was brought back onto Chan. Guilty looks were exchanged and sorrys were whispered as the hyungs quieted down and started crowding around his room.

“How are you aegi?” Jeonghan whispered as he sat beside Chan on the bed, combing back his hair.

“I’m good. Tired. But good.” Chan replied.

“Good. You gave us such a scare that day. I think I speak for all of us that you have to take better care of yourself, Chan.” Jeonghan leveled a stare at Chan, making him look down in guilt.

“I know hyung. I’m sorry. I won’t let it get to this point next time.”

“Damn right you won’t!” Seungkwan exclaimed from his position at the foot of the bed. Glares were set in his direction as Seungkwan covered his mouth, apologizing for his loudness.

Jeonghan sighed looking back at Chan.

“He’s right though Chan.” Jisoo whispered from his other side. “We heard from Seungcheol that you were staying back to practice more. But you were sick.”

“You wouldn’t let any of us practice if we were sick, would you?” Wonwoo reasoned.

“Yeah! You would use your aegyo on us and beg us to go home and get some rest!” Jun exclaimed.

“So why can’t you do the same to yourself?,” whispered Seokmin sadly, who looked like he was on the verge of tears.

Chan started to tear up.

“I know. I’m sorry for making you worry hyungs. I...I just I wanted to get better. I didn’t want this fever to slow me down. I...I didn’t want to seem weak. I’m sorry.” Chan said as he started to cry. Jeonghan reached over to hug him, patting his hair down and repeating reassuring words.

“You’re not weak. You’re one of the strongest people I know. And even those people need their rest sometimes. It’s not called being weak, it’s called taking care of yourself. Everything's going to be okay. We just want our maknae to be healthy and happy is all. Both inside and out.”

“Yeah and we’ll do a better job as hyungs to remind you and force you when you become stubborn. Like what we do to Jihoon hyung.” Minghao said.

Sniffling as he looked around, he noticed the absence of some of his members.

Seeing his glances, Hansol answered his unasked question.

“Seungcheol, Soonyoung, and Jihoon hyung are at a meeting with the CEO right now. They said they’ll come visit you later.”

“If you think we were bad, wait until they come,” Mingyu laughed, effectively lightening up the mood as Minghao jabbed him in the side beside him.

Looking down, he knew it was going to come but he also knew he wasn’t going to like it.

“They’re all just worried about you. You know everything we say, everything we do, is because we love you right? And we care about you.” Jeonghan said from his side, rubbing his back reassuringly.

Guilt filtered through as he was reminded of those exact words Jihoon had spoken to him before he fainted but not wanting to worry the other hyungs, Chan pushed out a small smile. _Yeah. I do. I love you guys too._

* * *

Later that day, when it got too late that the members had to go home, Chan let out a yawn. The leader hyungs haven’t visited him yet but he was informed that the CEO has given him 2 weeks to recover, whether or not he comes home from the hospital early or not. Letting out a sigh, Chan’s thoughts raced at imagining what his hyungs would do when they came to see him.

_Would Jihoon hyung yell at me? Would he tell me I told you so? What if Seungcheol hyung kicks me out of the group? Is Soonyoung hyung mad at me? I bet he is. He’s not going to let me stay after anymore after this!_

Amongst his little ramble in his head, a knock came at the door. Anticipating who it was, Chan sat up and nervously called out, “Come in.”

The door opened and the doctor walked in. Chan let out a sigh of relief as the tension in his body fizzled out.

“Hi Chan. I’ve come to give you your nutrients for tonight. Also to let in some visitors.”

Chan once again tensed up and looked down, not wanting to see his members faces that were sure to make him feel guilty, if not guiltier, than he already felt. After an awkward moment where the doctor added nutrients to his wire and bid him and his members goodnight as he left, the room was left in a tense mood. Chan swallowed nervously, looking anywhere but where his hyungs were. Finally, two sets of footsteps moved to each side of Chan’s bed.

“Chan ah.”

Hearing his name, spoken with a softness he didn’t feel like he deserved, Chan abruptly burst out into tears.

“Chan!”

Chan was pressed into a hug as hands moved against his back in attempts to soothe him. Chan let out all his guilt and cried out onto his hyung as he clutched on, clinging tightly. His hyungs continued to pet him as he let out all of his tears. Finally, after a while, the tears started slowing. Pulling away slightly, he looked up to see Seungcheol and Soonyoung’s faces.

“I’m so sorry. I’m so so so sorry. I’m sorry. I promise, I promise I won’t do it ever again. I’m sorry!”

Seungcheol let out a sigh as he pulled Chan back into his embrace, shushing him.

“It’s okay. Hey Chan, it’s okay.”

Chan let out a shattering breath as he slowly regained back control.

“You okay?” Soonyoung whispered, handing him some water.

Chan nodded gratefully, taking the drink.

“Drink up.”

Chan took a sip and then realizing how thirsty he actually was, drank the whole cup in one gulp. Seungcheol and Soonyoung smiled at him fondly, grabbing the cup after he was finished.

“Thank you,” Chan shyly said, tugging at his blanket.

“Now I know you probably heard everything from the other members so we’re not going to add anything more to pile on you today. That will be a discussion for another day after you get some rest. We just wanted to see you before you went to sleep since you just woke up.”

Chan smiled at them, feeling shy and embarrassed from the care and love he was receiving from his members.

Soonyoung awed and tugged Chan into a one-armed hug. “Our Channie’s getting shy on us, is he?”

“Arg, get off of me hyung!” Chan laughed, causing the other two to laugh as well.

“Alright. We just wanted to see you and see if you were doing fine. We’ll be back again tomorrow. Just to warn you, the other members are probably planning something that we don’t even know of right at this moment.”

Chan smiled at that thought.

“Good night Channie! Call us if you need anything, or if you get lonely okay?”

“Aish, hyung!” Laughing, the two waved at Chan as they made their way out the door.

“Oh wait!” Chan called right before the two walked out.

“Hm?”

“...where’s Jihoon hyung?”

“Oh. Jihoon had some things to take care of but he wishes you well! He’ll probably come by tomorrow with the rest of us.”

“Oh. Okay.” Feeling slightly dejected, he still put on a smile as he bid his hyungs good night.

_Is he still mad at me? He has every right to, I didn’t listen to him and now I’m here. What if he hates me now? Why didn’t he come? What is he doing? Does he not care about me anymore? But he seemed fine when I came to him at the studio. What if he doesn’t care about me anymore? What if he hates me? What if he doesn’t love me anymore? Did he ever love me? Of course he did! But I didn’t listen to him. And now he probably hates me… I’m sorry hyung… I’m so sorry..._

For the first time in a long time, Chan cried himself to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hope ya'll enjoyed this second part! let me know what you think so far and how you're feeling!


	3. Hospital Visits (minus one)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The members continue to visit Chan (but not the one he truly wants to see).

The next morning, Chan woke up feeling groggy. His face felt swollen, filled with tear tracks from that night. Sighing, he pressed the button for the doctor.

“Good morning Chan! How are we today?”

“Good.” Chan hoped he couldn’t see the tear marks on his face. “Can I get up to use the bathroom?”

“Of course you can! In fact, since you’re awake, we can take out this nutrients pouch and just have you start taking them via mouth. Let me take it out and you can use the bathroom. When you come back, I’m going to do another check on you.”

Nodding, Chan waited until the needle was out of his arm and made his way to the bathroom. He almost regretted looking at himself in the mirror. His eyes were red and swollen and his face bloated. Sighing, Chan quickly did his business, washed his hands and face, brushed his teeth, and went back out towards his bed. The doctor did the routine check-up, noting that everything seemed pretty okay and that his fever spiked up a bit but that was most likely due to the stress of seeing his hyungs again. He instructed him to lay down and rest as much as he can, telling him he can watch t.v. before his members come or read some magazines, before leaving the room.

Chan decided to watch T.V. for a bit before his members came. At around 8 o’clock, breakfast was served and Chan was so happy. He had forgotten how hungry he was amongst the stress he was feeling and finished his food in no time.

After breakfast, Chan watched a bit more T.V. and at around 11, his members came through the door.

“Hi Chan! How are you?” Seokmin asked, bouncing into the room.

“I’m doing good hyung.” his mood lightening up from seeing his members.

Chan was scared they would bring up last night’s topic again, but as his members came in, they all acted normally, allowing Chan to relax. His eyes sprung to every member, hoping to catch sight of the member he was hoping to see, but was disappointed when the last person to enter the door was Soonyoung.

“Aw Chan, I’m glad to see you too!” Soonyoung teased as he closed the door. Chan flushed.

Laughing, Seungcheol took pity on the maknae. “Some of the members have their own schedules.”

Chan didn’t even notice that there were more members missing than just Jihoon. Wanting to ask where he was specifically but not wanting to bring attention to the fact, Chan nodded and smiled as the rest of the members once again crowded into his room.

* * *

The next day, Chan was determined. He had time to think things through and seeing how forgiving his other members were, he was prepared to talk to Jihoon today. But again, his hyung wasn’t there to visit him when the others came.

Noticing Chan’s dejected mood, Hansol came by and sat next to him.

“He’s not mad at you. He just has things to do.”

Ever the observant one. Chan, embarrassed he was caught, tried to save himself. “Who?”

Hansol gave him a look as if asking him  _ really? _

Chan sighed knowing he couldn’t fool him.

“He had more important things to do than to visit me?” Chan said in a small voice.

Hansol pulled him close with one arm and squeezed him.

“He’ll come. Don’t worry.”

Chan sighed.

* * *

On the 3rd day, the day he was supposed to be released, his fever once again spiked up, causing the doctor to look over him in concern.

“You’re not straining yourself are you? Or secretly practicing at night when no one’s here?”

Chan shook his head, a headache forming. All he could think and stress about was how his Jihoon hyung hadn’t and wasn’t going to visit him. He wanted to cry again.

The doctor shook his head. “This is no good. I’m going to call the members and tell them not to come today since your fever spiked up. It might have to do with them that’s maybe overwhelming you. I want you to spend today relaxing okay? Try not to stress, both your body and your mind.”

The doctor walked out, with a phone in his hand.

Chan sighed again and went back to sleep as he was still tired.

* * *

“Okay. Okay, thank you doctor. No, I don’t think so doctor. That’s okay, I’ll be sure to let them know. Thank you. Bye.”

“So when are we going to pick up Chan?” Jeonghan asked from across the practice room.

“We’re not.” Seungcheol replied, causing all eyes to look at him. “That was the doctor. He said Chan’s fever spiked up again and he doesn’t know why but he’s going to keep him isolated for the time being and try to get it down again. He thinks it might be from stress.”

“From us?” Soonyoung asked, confused. “But we were just hanging out like normal. We made sure not to bring it up again.”

“I don’t know either…”

Everyone started to contemplate when Hansol’s eyes caught Jihoon’s from across the room.

“...I think I know.”

Everyone turned to look at Hansol.

“What? Did he say something to you? Was it us? What did we do?”

“...it’s Jihoon hyung.”

Everyone’s eyes then turned to look at Jihoon, who looked just as equally confused.

“What? What did I do? I haven’t even gone to see him.”

“That’s exactly it hyung. He wants to see you. He’s probably worrying about you right now.”

“Why would he worry about me? He should worry about himself first.”

Jihoon looked down at the floor in guilt. There was a reason why he wasn’t going to visit Chan but he couldn’t tell his members about it.

“You were the one who saw him last. Maybe he feels guilty or embarrassed? Why didn’t you go visit him?”

“I had things to do, I told you guys.”

“More important things than our maknae?” Seungcheol asked, giving him a pointed stare.

“...okay. What happened between the two of you. I can’t believe I’m just noticing this now.” Soonyoung exclaimed.

“What do you mean? Nothing happened.”

“Something happened alright. Come on. Spill it, Jihoon.” Wonwoo stated.

“....”

Everyone’s eyes turned expectantly as they stared Jihoon down.

“Okay fine! We just had a fight. I told Seungcheol hyung this already but I tried to get Chan to go home early but he wouldn’t listen and kept practicing. We fought, I went back to my studio, he came to me and apologized and fainted. That’s it.”

“...so why haven’t you been visiting him with us?” Jun asked perceptively.

“I was busy!”

“Busy doing what? What’s more important than our maknae? I thought you cared about him!”

“I do! That’s why I’m doing this! You think I don’t want to go? You think I want to stay back and work? No! I just...this is my way of caring for him.”

“...Lee Jihoon, that is the most stupid thing I’ve heard you said EVER.” Soonyoung said.

“Wait, wait.” Jisoo interrupted before a fight broke out. “What do you mean this is your way of caring for him?”

“...the fight we had. He said I was selfish to think and care about myself. He didn’t appreciate me trying to help him. So I decided to give him space. That’s what I assumed he wanted. And wants now. I don’t want to make him uncomfortable.” Jihoon whispered sadly.

Soonyoung, who moments ago wanted to throttle Jihoon, softened up completely.

“I’m sure he didn’t mean that. It was probably in the heat of the moment. I’m sure he’s really stressed right now, wondering why you aren’t visiting him and if you hate him or not.”

Jihoon snapped his head up.

“I don’t hate him!”

“Well go tell him that,” Seungcheol smiled encouragingly.

Jihoon looked hesitant. “But the doctor said he needed his rest…”

“If it’s you he's stressing about hyung, I think you should go now rather than later to help him get better soon!” Seungkwan chimed in.

Jihoon thought about it and sighed, nodding.

“Alright, I’ll go.” The members cheered for him.

Smiling, Jihoon headed out the door and prepared himself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> all of ya’ll are so amazing can i just- i’m screaming. and crying. ugh. emotions. but much much love to all of you who have been reading and who have commented and/or kudos! i have so much love for all of you.


	4. Talking it Out

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jihoon and Chan finally have their talk.

Throughout the day, Chan kept going in and out of naps. Sometimes, he would wake from a nightmare. Other times, he would wake up from the discomfort of his body heat. There was a knock on the door that woke Chan up from his slumber. Assuming that it was the doctor again, Chan moved to his side, cuddling with his blanket. The door closed and footsteps came closer to his bedside. A hand came up to brush through his bangs.

_ Wait a second...that’s not the doctor. _

Chan slightly opened his eyes to see Jihoon.

_ It’s Jihoon hyung! _

Unexpected and unprepared, his heart started to pound heavily against his chest. Unfortunately for him, since his spike in temperature, he was back on the heart monitor again and so it was clearly heard.

“Chan?!” Jihoon worryingly said. The doctor rushed in as Chan sighed, opening his eyes.

The doctor quickly rushed over to Chan only to see him awake and looking fine, the heart monitor already beginning to slow down. “Maybe you should leave…” the doctor said, wary of what the presence of the member was doing to Chan.

“No! I’m sorry. It was me. It’s okay. Everything’s okay. I’m fine.” Chan tried giving the doctor a big smile. He needed to talk to Jihoon. The doctor was not convinced but remembering the request he got a few minutes ago, nodded and retreated out of the room, not before giving a warning that if anything else happened, he was going to be isolated again.

It was silent for a couple of minutes as the two looked awkwardly at anything but each other. Jihoon finally sighed, bringing Chan’s attention to him.

“Look. I’m sorry for not visiting you. It’s no excuse but I was busy doing other things.”

“...other things more important than me?” Chan whispered softly.

“No! Why does everyone keep saying that! Nothing is more important than you!” Jihoon immediately wanted to take back his words as a flush appeared on his face. Chan also began to blush at his words, looking down at his blanket shyly. “Ugh, no, that’s not what I mean--- no I meant that but I just, uGH, I’m not good at this!” Letting out a sigh, he softly said, “I didn’t want to make you uncomfortable okay? From our last fight…” Chan winced. “I wasn’t sure if I was crossing a line or something. I’m sorry.”

“No hyung, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said those things. I know that you were only trying to look out for me and that you care about me. I didn’t mean it, I’m sorry. I promise to take care of myself from now on. I learnt. I’m sorry.” Chan cursed his tear ducts as his eyes started watering up again.

Jihoon looked at Chan and seeing the sincerity in his eyes made him smile. Ruffling Chan’s hair, lightening the mood up, he said, “That’s all I wanted to hear. You taking care of yourself.”

Chan smiled, sniffling, a weight lifted off his shoulders from his hyung’s actions.

“I really didn’t mean anything I said. Please don’t feel like you have to pull away from me. I pretend I hate it but I really like it when you take care of me. Please don’t stop doing it.” Blushing, Chan looked down at his blankets. “Please don’t tell the other hyungs I told you that.”

Laughing out loud, Jihoon looked at Chan fondly. “Of course I won’t. Your secret is kept with me.”

Looking at Jihoon’s face, the two smiled at each other and in that moment, they both knew everything was going to be alright.

~~~BONUS~~~

“Hyuuung, can’t you stay?”

“I’m sorry Chan ah, I would but you need your rest.” Jihoon brushed back Chan’s bangs as he looked at the older with a pout.

“I can rest better with you with me.” Chan pleaded as he held on tightly to his hyung’s shirt. Jihoon looked torn between wanting to stay but also wanting the maknae to get some well needed rest to recover.

“Hyuuuuung,” tears appeared in Chan’s eyes. Okay, maybe he was being over dramatic but he really didn’t want him to leave. He knew it was irrational but he didn’t want it to feel like this was a dream and that tomorrow, Jihoon would be back to ignoring and hating him (even though he never did or was to begin with). Jihoon softened quickly at the sight of tears.

“Alright, alright. Let me go talk to the doctor okay?”

Chan's face immediately brightened up. Nodding his head profusely, he let go of Jihoon’s shirt and laid back on his bed, looking at him in anticipation. Jihoon chuckled.

“Brat.” Chan only smiled innocently back.

Making his way out the door, he stopped by to ask the doctor for permission to stay overnight. The doctor was reluctant at first, stating how it was going against policy, but as he had noticed his patient was in distress and crying before, he figured if Chan wanted him to stay, it was probably for good reason and decided to make an exception since he looked better than before. The doctor left to go back into Chan’s room for a last check up for the night and to get things settled for Jihoon to sleep with. Meanwhile, Jihoon got on his phone to call his members and let them know. Startled by his phone ringing before he could open it, he rolled his eyes as the suspicion that his members were spying on him in some way grew. Answering the facetime call, he was greeted by 3 faces shoving themselves at the camera.

“Jihoon! Did you get there? Were you able to talk to Chan?”

“Where are you?? Why are the walls behind you white??”

“JIHOON IS CHAN OKAY TELL HIM I LOVE HIM.”

“Woah woah woAH GUYS CALM DOWN.”

His fellow 96 line members quieted down and backed away from the camera so that all their faces were in view. Jihoon rolled his eyes in exasperation.

“Yes I’m here at the hospital. I went out to speak to the doctor for a bit so I’m in the hallways not in his room. He’s doing okay.” Jihoon answered all of their questions calmly.

“Why did you have to speak to the doctor?” Wonwoo asked.

“Chan wants me to stay so I was just asking for permission. Oh right, I was just about to call you guys to tell you too but you beat me to it. Tell Seungcheol for me?”

“D’awww Channie asked you to stay?...Wait, I want to stay too! I’m coming!” Jun grabbed onto Soonyoung before he could do something rash.

“Stay! Okay Jihoon! We’ll let Seungcheol hyung know! Have fun! Tell Chan I hope he gets better! We’ll see the both of you tomorrow!” Jun waved at the camera as Soonyoung struggled against his surprisingly tight grip.

“Noooo, don’t goooooo, I wanna go tooooo.”

“Bye Jihoon! We’ll see you tomorrow! Wish Chan goodnight for me! Love you guys.” Wonwoo waved as he took hold of the phone camera while Jun continued to fight Soonyoung to keep still.

“Love you too Won. Love you Jun, love you Soonyoung. Goodnight.”

“Love you Jihoon! Bye! Good night!” Jun and Soonyoung chorused from behind Wonwoo.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fluff, fluff, FLUFFFFF. I’ve had so many versions of this in my mind and this is the one that came through! I'm honestly so proud of it. Let me know what you guys think of it! comments & kudos are like water to me, THEY GIVE ME LIFE and help me grow SO PLS (; thank ya’ll for reading!! ~<3


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